Article

Referring to opposition remarks on the revised wording of the Electoral Code (EC), vice speaker Ziyafat Asgarov told AssA-Irada "this is an attempt to gain political points." Pointing to praise of the document by international experts, the vice speaker stressed that the ruling circles would try to obtain approval of the newly revised wording, as it stipulates the forming of 21-member electoral commissions, which in turn better mirror the present-day realities in Azerbaijan. The mechanism for the forming of electoral commissions is responsible for setting the current government against the opposition. An OSCE initiative to act as a go-between at government opposition roundtables on EC was frustrated after the opposition refused to participate. Though the yesterday's face-to-face meeting between S. Aliyev and F. Agayev pointed to a certain rapprochement on the issue, for the first time since the stand-off, the parties again failed to come to agreement on any issue. As a result, parties represented at the Co-ordinating Centre of the Opposition have been rebuffed by the government, which seems to have failed in clarifying tactical devices.